If any Colts fans are still wondering whether Andrew Luck is the right quarterback to lead Indianapolis into the post-Peyton Manning era, those concerns can be addressed by one of Manning’s most important mentors. Tom Moore, the offensive coordinator who oversaw Manning’s record-setting career from 1998 though 2010, became Luck’s football tutor shortly after the 2011 NFL season concluded.

Luck’s father, Oliver, played quarterback for the Houston Oilers from 1982 through 1986. A Rhodes scholar finalist in 1981 who later served as President and CEO of NFL Europe, Oliver Luck asked Moore to work with Andrew in a one-on-one classroom setting while Andrew was preparing for the Scouting Combine.

For three weeks, Moore and Andrew Luck spent three-to-four hours per day studying film and reviewing protections, coverages, blitz recognition, and more.

I spoke exclusively with Moore about his time with Luck. Here are the highlights of our conversation:

MT: So what was your overall impression of Luck?

MOORE: He’s the real deal. If you draft him you never have to worry about anything. You know he’ll be prepared. You know he’ll be in shape. You know he’ll study. You know he’ll practice hard. You won’t have to worry about anything. And you’ll know he’s going to go home and spend two-to-three more hours working on what you talked about.

MT: What does he have going for him that others don’t?

MOORE: Number one, he’s very intelligent. He’s extremely intelligent. Second, he’s from a football family. In the classroom, he has the things you’re looking for. He has recall. You go over something on Monday, and on Friday when you put in the tapes he has instant recall. If I was still coaching I’d love to have him because he can do the things I like to do: audibles at the line of scrimmage; no-huddle. He has a great awareness of what’s happening.

MT: How soon do you think he could become an NFL starting quarterback?

MOORE: The first day of the first practice. That’s what we did with Peyton. I told Kelly Holcomb, “Go stand behind me. Peyton’s taking the snaps.”

MT: What about reports that the Colts are considering signing Byron Leftwich to mentor Luck?

MOORE: Andrew Luck doesn’t need a mentor. I’ve never bought into the theory that you learn by watching. I think all that stuff is really overrated. Is he going to make mistakes? Yeah, who hasn’t? But I know Andrew’s a strong enough person that he’s going to handle the comparisons [to Manning], and he’ll handle it perfect.

MT: What do you make of the reports that the Colts are considering taking Robert Griffin III with the top pick?

MOORE: This kid [Luck] is the first pick in the first round and there’s no question about it. I would draft him and I would never look back.

MT: How do you envision him taking command of an NFL huddle as a rookie?

MOORE: He has no qualms or questions about his convictions and what he sees and what he thinks should be done [on the field]. So when he gets in the huddle he’s gonna take control.

MT: I know it’s not fair to compare Andrew Luck to Peyton Manning, but it sounds like they share a lot of the same characteristics.

MOORE: Andrew’s special. And I thought Peyton was special. A lot of people want to be good. But do they want to do what they have to do to be good. There is no doubt in my mind that Andrew is willing to do what it takes. God gave him the ability to do it.

MT: How do you think Luck will fit in with what Bruce Arians will do as the Colts offensive coordinator?

MOORE: I know Bruce, and I think it’ll be a great fit. Bruce is an excellent coach. Bruce is the type of coach that’ll do what is good for Andrew. As a coach, your job is to give a guy the chance to be the best he can be. To take advantage of what his skills and strengths are. Bruce has had great success and will design things to take advantage of Andrew’s skills.

MT: Final thoughts?

MOORE: [Luck] fired me up when I was out there [working with him]. I was thinking, ‘Would I love to have an opportunity to coach this kid!’ He’s what you want. And he got [former U.S. Secretary of State] Condoleezza Rice to autograph my copy of her book.”

poor kid, he is going to be in Manning’s shadow for at least 10years. I hope he is prepared…

This is a guy who struggled to win bowl games. Now they are asking him to become a Peyton Manning.

duneroad says:Apr 3, 2012 9:09 PM

Well, he just got done watching Sanchez for a year so Ryan Leaf would probably look good to Moore

colinito says:Apr 3, 2012 9:09 PM

Hmm.. his father was a runner-up Rhodes scholar, and he has ins with Condy… sounds like he comes from a family in the “Brotherhood.” If you know what I mean, you know what I mean. Bloodline ain’t just a line from Under Armor..

Moore: why did you have to ask me that?! Now I need to change my shorts.

Exiled1 says:Apr 3, 2012 9:13 PM

There is just something to Luck when you hear him being interviewed that mkes you know he’s a great player.

As a Packer fan I’m happy that we have Aaron Rodgers,but I’m excited to see the next big thing in QB’s. No disrespect to RG3. I think he’ll be a good starter and is a marketing dream,but Luck just seems to me to be the real deal.

Can’t wait to see this guy play. This year will be rough with the state of the Colts in flux ,but in about 2-3 years he’ll be something special and Irsay is the luckiest owner in sports for that.

So it became very obvious in 96 that Houston did not throw the season for Reggie Bush. As a matter of fact it cost everyone there job except for Charley Casserly, who ended up drafting Williams instead. (as it did turn out he made the right pick)

This reads like Indy has targeted Luck since possibly prior to the lockout.

jaggedmark says:Apr 3, 2012 9:15 PM

How would they not look back, if 10 years down the road this was a bad decision?

The redskins fans want us to stay away from RG3…. That is more than fine…. We will be laughing in 3 years when Peyton is commentating lucks first superbowl on NBC… I think Indy is good, lmao, and the skins settle for the leftover… Wait until the RG3 trolls read this….

Michele Tafoya is a real deal journalist. I will read anything she writes. Seriously.

coop16 says:Apr 3, 2012 9:32 PM

Not a Colts fan (I root for the Browns, and yes I’m crazy in other ways as well), but I agree with Tom Moore. Luck is a sure thing; RG3, not so much. RG3 will PROBABLY be terrific; Luck will DEFINITELY be terrific. The Colts would be foolish to risk the #1 pick on a guy who isn’t a sure thing … like the Browns did with Tim Couch, for example. Remember him?

puckthefatriots says:Apr 3, 2012 9:39 PM

Struggled to win bowl games?? are you kidding me??…completely dominated Va tech in the Orange Bowl his Sophmore year and had a nearly flawless performance in Fiesta his junior year..His kicker couldnt make a kick..one of the most uninformed posts i’ve ever seen on this site..well done ravenzGunnerz

you know I believe luck and rgIII will both be good players, but where are all the haters? you know the people who say matt flynn was kolb or cassel? don’t these same people think that luck and rgIII will be like vince young and matt leinhart? just curious because i haven’t heard any haters, and i find that odd.

Weird, Griffin’s agent says the Colts should take his client “and never look back”. What a coincidence!

andreaallennyc says:Apr 3, 2012 9:51 PM

@ravenzgunnerz, You need to get your facts straight. You say Luck is a guy who struggled to win bowl games? He was in two bowl games. In the 2010 Orange bowl, he led Stanford to a 40-12 win over Virgina Tech. In 2011, he was the QB for a 41-38 loss to Oklahoma State in overtime, due to a coaching decision to go for a kick when he had downs and time left to keep the ball in Lucks hands and instead chose to put the win in the hands, well on the foot, of a freshman kicker who had just been out for weeks with an injury. Remember, Luck’s offense, under his direction, scored 38 points against a great Oklahoma State team that gave up an average of 26.8 points a game over the season. Unfortunately, even a great QB can’t win every game … He needs defense at the very least and good coaching decisions. He took responsibility for that loss because he’s a class act, but for you to describe him as someone who struggled to win bowl games is really silly … You don’t know what you are talking about.

It will be a nice moment for the family when RGIII is selected by the Redskins and his 10 year old son, RGIV, gets to share the moment with him.
Luck is the man. Someday we will laugh at this like Manning/Leaf.
RG Leaf

Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen a guest poster. Pretty nice little coup, Florio. Tafoya is a name and respectable sports journalist. Will this be a welcome trend of guest posters? I’d like to see a Costas or someone along those lines guest post. Nice work.

theytukrjobs says:Apr 3, 2012 10:11 PM

Andrew Luck is an amazing looking QB prospect. So amazing in fact that I’d put his chances at becoming an elite top 3 QB in this league someday at 20%, probably the highest you could ever give to a player.

I’m really not being sarcastic. Just pointing out that no matter how good he looks, the odds and history show pretty clearly that he’s unlikely to ever be one of the best. You can study the hell out of the game but at the end of the day a good defense can disguise a look and identifying that on the fly and sliding into a throwing lane and delivering an on target throw to the second window a WR is streaking into with about 2.5 seconds of time is something that absolutely cannot be taught, nor can it be predicted from NFL film study, Wonderlic scores, or a guy’s “makeup”.

Running a college offense that runs the ball effectively 50% of the time doesn’t guarantee a guy will ever light it up in the NFL. It doesn’t matter what any expert says about it. He could end up being a solid Flacco or Ryan type of QB and the Colts will have gotten good value for the pick. That much looks quite certain. But to expect him to be one of the best is still a stretch.

sbs9101314304043 says:Apr 3, 2012 10:14 PM

Not to take anything away from Luck, but Tom Moore was paid to help mentor him through the Draft so what else would a paid employee say?

It is so funny that the Colts keep getting great QBs while some other NFL teams can’t get a good QB in 50 years. Look at the Bears. Sid Luckman..then MAYBE Jim McMahon. We had Unitas, Jones, Manning, and now Luck.

“I know Bruce, and I think it’ll be a great fit. Bruce is an excellent coach. Bruce is the type of coach that’ll do what is good for Andrew. As a coach, your job is to give a guy the chance to be the best he can be. To take advantage of what his skills and strengths are. Bruce has had great success and will design things to take advantage of Andrew’s skills.”

I almost spit my drink all over the screen when I read this. Bruce Arians is one of the worst coordinators in the NFL. It was Roethisberger’s audibles and improvisation that made B.A. look good.

Colts fans will soon grow tired of seeing the game damn bubble screens over and over and over again, and incorrect use of talent.

If your offense works better when the QB is making the play calls on the field, there is a serious issue with the man calling the offensive plays. My call, Arians doesn’t last more that 2 years with the and poor Andrew Luck will be left fighting off a “Bust” tag.

Somone with common sense versus the press with its continual Griffin buildup.

croghan1919 says:Apr 3, 2012 10:22 PM

I never really heard of RG3 until this year. On the other hand, its been said that Luck would have been #1 last year too. Thats gotta tell something?
I just hope my sometimes flakey owner doesnt go for the headline that taking RG over AL would bring.

So it became very obvious in 96 that Houston did not throw the season for Reggie Bush. As a matter of fact it cost everyone there job except for Charley Casserly, who ended up drafting Williams instead. (as it did turn out he made the right pick)

This reads like Indy has targeted Luck since possibly prior to the lockout
—————————————————–

This makes no sense. Tom Moore works for the Jets, not the Colts. Also, Jim Irsay cleaned house after this season…total front office overhaul and fired all the coaches (except for Clyde Christiansen…he didn’t get fired…just demoted).

Arians is a bad offensive coordinator? Why did Ben throw a fit when they “made him retire”???? Why did Peyton manning give the colts a full endorsement on arians? Sounds to me like arians may have made best with the mediocre talent that is Pittsburghs offense. Ben couldn’t stay away from defenders, an sounds like a new offensive line, and coach would be best suited for these comments. But that’s right, tje steelers were out of it the first round by Tim Tebow…. Ike Taylor got burnt like toast, by again a Tim Tebow pass….. Yep, Arians sounds horrible…

I don’t think Luck will ever be in Peyton’s shadow. The fans want Luck. Everyone knows he’s going to be great. He’ll probably bring home more Super Bowl titles than Manning. I say he wins three in his career.

Not sure I understand why Ryan Leaf is being brought up all the time. I don’t see anything to indicate either player is similar to Ryan Leaf in any way. Why can’t both players make it? Wouldn’t that be better for the sport in general?

Arians is a bad offensive coordinator? Why did Ben throw a fit when they “made him retire”???? Why did Peyton manning give the colts a full endorsement on arians? Sounds to me like arians may have made best with the mediocre talent that is Pittsburghs offense. Ben couldn’t stay away from defenders, an sounds like a new offensive line, and coach would be best suited for these comments. But that’s right, tje steelers were out of it the first round by Tim Tebow…. Ike Taylor got burnt like toast, by again a Tim Tebow pass….. Yep, Arians sounds horrible…”

Oh my dear Colts fan… Keep on drinking that Kool-Aid until you realize that the dude just ran the same play six times in three series, just to different players. Or when he consistently insists on going deep when the defense is obviously playing deep.

Roethlisberger “threw a fit” for two reasons. No. 1 he and Arians were good friends off of the field. No. 2 Arians trusted Ben and Ben does not want to have to earn an O-coordinators trust again. That is it, nothing else.

Mediocre talent on Pittsburgh’s offense?? Ummm, what team were you watching the last two seasons? That offense has awesome weapons, but the play calling kept it from doing what it could. When you have predictable play calling, the O-line starts to suffer near the end of the game, as the defense knows what you are going to do next. Once the D knows that , the offensive line has no chance in hell.

Come talk to me after two seasons, you’ll be calling for Arian’s head too. Us Steelers fans rarely call for a coaches head, but Arians head was on the fans’ chopping blocks every single year due to his questionable play calling.

Wow, Ike Taylor got beat on one pass in likely one of the top-20 seasons EVER by a defensive back. Yeah, that blown coverage was pretty much at the worst time, but he was still one of the best last year and it was one of the lowest completion percentages thrown toward a corner EVER in the NFL. Look it up….

Why is there even any debate? Luck has had the pressure and spotlight on him for years now. If anyone can deal with inheriting Peyton’s team it’s him. I’d never even heard of Griffin before this season. No disrespect to him, I believe that he’s an amazing prospect, but he’s not the sure thing that Luck is.

I live in Indy and trust me, there may be a handfull of people that prefer RG3 over Luck and thats it. If Irsay picked RG3(which he won’t) there would be all out anarchy in the city of Indy. Let the Skins have the future bust of the 2012 NFL draft. After all the ridiculous hype Griffin has recieved over the last couple of months its going to be hilarious to watch him fail miserably.

One person said something about if an offense runs better when the QB on the field calls the plays that it means your OC isn’t good.

I beg to differ. If you ask almost anyone in football circles they will tell you that the QB is in the action, he can see things from his vantage point that the OC can’t. Especially when the QBs headset goes off at 15 secs on the playclock and the Defense shifts its sets. If you’re OC insists on running what he calls with no audibles, he’s either A) an egotist or B) an Idiot

bigbalz says:
Apr 4, 2012 8:21 AM
I live in Indy and trust me, there may be a handfull of people that prefer RG3 over Luck and thats it. If Irsay picked RG3(which he won’t) there would be all out anarchy in the city of Indy. Let the Skins have the future bust of the 2012 NFL draft. After all the ridiculous hype Griffin has recieved over the last couple of months its going to be hilarious to watch him fail miserably.

__
RG III won’t “fail miserably” but I do agree with Tom Moore that the Colts should take Luck and not look back. Luck was showing Peyton Manning like acumen way back in high school. He has “it” and always will have “it”.

what exactly makes Andrew Luck a sure thing and RG3 a POSSIBLE? like where are yall so called wannabe experts getting this knowledge from. Luck is just as much as A POSSIBLE as RG3.. so quit the BS!

mallyredskins says:Apr 4, 2012 11:52 AM

bigbalz says:
Apr 4, 2012 8:21 AM
I live in Indy and trust me, there may be a handfull of people that prefer RG3 over Luck and thats it. If Irsay picked RG3(which he won’t) there would be all out anarchy in the city of Indy. Let the Skins have the future bust of the 2012 NFL draft. After all the ridiculous hype Griffin has recieved over the last couple of months its going to be hilarious to watch him fail miserably.
__________________________________
Trust me when i say this, the skins will be a much better squad than your colts!! Your ENTIRE team was pathetic last year. We suffered from the lack of skills at the QB position. Dont get it twisted, yall dont want us on yall schedule trust me.

bangitfootball says:Apr 4, 2012 12:12 PM

RG3 = Andre Ware?
Ware was also a Heisman Trophy winner and also a product of a system . Ware was the 7th overall pick in his 1st round class. Only RG3 receivers were better. His NFL career consisted of 5 tds and 9 interceptions. Total.

“Condoleezza Rice sounds like a Mexican dish, maybe we should put her on a plate and send her to Mexico so the Mexicans will eat her. White power!”

lgwelsh1 says:Apr 4, 2012 7:28 PM

All Luck has to do is win games. Manning will but a memory to his former fans. This happens in every single sport when a legend moves on.

If he loses BAD and doesn’t show any promise the fans will never let it go.

Look at Miami, they still cry for Dan Marino.

gator2006 says:Apr 4, 2012 9:39 PM

If Payton just signed such a big deal, why couldn’t the Colts just trade him after picking up his option?

gator2006 says:Apr 4, 2012 9:40 PM

Peyton* oops

cantarguefacts says:Apr 5, 2012 5:01 PM

@gator2006

if they picked up his option they would still take a huge cap hit for this season even if they traded him

andreaallennyc says:Apr 6, 2012 4:03 PM

Not sure where all this nonsense about Condi Rice is coming from. She was the Stanford Provost before going to Washington and being the Sec of State. When she left Washington, she returned to Stanford as a faculty member. She is very active with Stanford athletics, especially football. She was the honorary captain for one game last year and regularly helps with recruiting. Coach Shaw has said she’s his secret weapon and regularly meets with recruits and their families during campus visits. She talks football, mostly, yes, the Xs and Os. She once said her dream job would be NFL commissioner. Anyway, of course Andrew Luck knows her … So does every other football player and a lot of the other teams too. And of course she’d sign copies of her book if someone wanted. I think it says something good about Tom Moore that he was interested in her book. She’s a smart, classy person.
FYI, I’m not a Republican!

on C. Rice: she is the former u.s. secretary of state, a Stanford alum and currently teaches at Stanford. Andrew Luck attended Stanford and played for the football team. shouldn’t be hard to connect those dots.

on why Luck is the better qb: one word – intelligence. no other qb in college football last season called his own plays, nor memorized a playbook the size of Stanford’s on a weekly basis. essentially, Luck was an offensive coordinator on the field.

on Tom Moore’s credibility: whether you like it or not, Moore is really only echoing what a great majority of others have already said; he simply waited until after working with Luck for three weeks to say it.

oh and for the record, if the colts sign Leftwich, it will be he who is mentored by Luck — NOT the other way around!

andreaallennyc says:Apr 6, 2012 7:36 PM

mallyredskins says:
Apr 4, 2012 11:46 AM
what exactly makes Andrew Luck a sure thing and RG3 a POSSIBLE? like where are yall so called wannabe experts getting this knowledge from. Luck is just as much as A POSSIBLE as RG3.. so quit the BS!
_________________________
If all you are saying is that neither has been in the NFL yet, fine. But RGIII is incredibly less polished as a QB and has had no experience in a pro system (while that’s what Luck ran at Stanford), and RGIIIs main strengths (speed and arm strength) are not the things that, historically, have really translated into wins in the NFL. There are reasons that Luck has been considered the most pro ready QB since Manning or Elway and RGIII has been considered someone with great potential.

Reading this a few years later…It was true Luck is a better pro than RG3… Luck does not live in Peyton`s shadow because Peyton is making the rest of the league look like pee wee league. As a lifelong Colts fan, Until Manning retires I am a Broncos fan 1st.